บท 4: Worry
"What do you think about this?" Beth asked, picking up the gowns which she had chosen. The elder Harris' daughter picked up the dress in her hand and placed it at the front so that Madeline could decide if it was good enough to be worn at the grand ball.
Madeline moved forward and looked at the gowns that had been chosen and asked, "What about the red one?" compared to the other dresses, the red one stood out the most. Made of silk and lace with embroidered stonework, she waited as Beth picked up the dress and turned to look at the mirror.
"I guess it doesn't look bad on me," Beth turned back and forth. She turned to look at Mr. Heathcliff, who had been waiting on the two girls. "How much is this one?" she asked him with her expressive green eyes.
"That would cost a whole silver coin," Mr. Heathcliff wasn't sure if they could afford a whole silver for a single piece of the gown as there was also Madeline who was yet to choose her gown. Even Madeline wondered if they could afford it but her sister, Beth, surprised her by saying,
"I will take it. Maddie, why don't you choose one for yourself?" asked Beth.
"Mr. Heathcliff, could you excuse us for a moment," Madeline requested the man who gave her a nod and left the sisters in the backroom. The younger girl asked, "Do you have a coin of silver? We still need to get clothes for mother and father."
"Oh, don't worry about that. I saved some money from what I received," answered Beth who was still looking at the gown that she held in her hand, " It is not a small gathering. People from different parts of the towns and villages are going to be there. I would like to see our family dressed well. I wouldn't rob my sister and my family from the joy of going to the castle. Is that what you think?" Beth looked sad with the thought.
"Of course not! It is just that a coin of silver is too much for us to give for a single gown. I know you aren't like that," said Madeline with a small frown, "If you say that you have saved enough, then it should be fine."
"You worry for no reason," Beth placed the gown down and started to look for other gowns that were not from the same rack which she had picked for herself, "We are visiting the castle, therefore, we cannot afford to look like we came from the village."
"I don't think there's anything wrong in the village," Madeline said, searching the gowns herself.
"Nobody said anything is wrong with the village," Beth laughed, "Before I was on my way home, I heard Mr. Craigs that he received an invitation to the ball too. So you can tell what kind of people will be there. There are going to be eligible men, you should find one there," advised Beth to her little sister who didn't know how life worked.
"I think I am fine here," Madeline laughed as her sister Beth had plans to marry a man from the ball.
Beth, who was looking for a gown for Madeline, stopped and came to stand next to her sister, "Truly, you don't plan to find a man like Mr. Heathcliff. He is a nice man, but as your sister, I would want you to marry someone much better than him. Imagine both you and I married someone who is sound in wealth. It would benefit not only us but also our parents."
Madeline didn't respond. It was rude to speak about Mr. Heathcliff when they were in his shop. He had been generous to lend them the clothes first, "I think I am much more suitable for the life here. I have you. I am sure when you get betrothed to the man you want, you will help us."
"That I will," Beth replied with a grin, "I hear the king is very handsome and is single."
"Aren't there gossips about him bedding many women?" Madeline asked her sister, going back to look at the gowns.
"They are just rumours. It isn't like any of the villagers have ever seen him. The King doesn't invite everyone to see him. People are jealous and will spew any nonsense," Beth said, taking the red gown she had picked for herself, "and who knows, if the King takes an interest in me, there wouldn't be anything to worry. I guess red is the right choice," Madeline saw her sister Beth grin widely.
"Red suits you. You will stand out once you wear it, you stand out without it too," Madeline smiled at her sister.
"Look at you being my personal cheerer. Let's find you a gown so that we don't impose on the man further."
Beth instead of looking at the gowns that were fabricated in silk, moved to the other side looking at different materials, "I think I found one," said the elder girl and pulled out a beige coloured gown.
Compared to the striking red gown that Beth had picked for herself, she had picked a paler gown for Madeline. It wasn't silk but made of different fabrics. Not having a chance to open and look at the dress properly because of the crowd that stood waiting outside the tailor shop, the girls quickly picked up gowns and clothes for their parents. Paying Mr. Heathcliff with silver and bronze coins, they left thanking the man.
After the time of dinner, Mr. and Mrs. Harris had retired to their room. Mr. Harris gave a thought regarding the invitation that had been sent to them.
Mr. Harris said, "It is said that the castle is not safe. People get lost and disappear, never to be seen again. You have heard rumours about the King. Somewhere, I don't feel right to go and attend the Hallow there."
"It would be rude to refuse an invitation that has come from the castle, you and I both know that. It is only a ball, what can go wrong. There will be masks covering our faces," Mrs. Harris tried to ease her husband's worried lines that had formed on his face, "Also, the girls have reached their peak point of age, meeting other men out of this village would do them good," she said while fluffing the pillow and getting the blanket on the bed which had been washed and dried today.
Her husband's frown only deepened further, "You don't plan to marry them with somebody there, do you? We know nothing about the people who will be attending there. Beth is a child, still young."
"Beth is a grown woman and knows what she wants. She would be helping our family with our current situation. There's no harm with that," said Mrs. Harris, keeping the best interest of her family in her mind. It wasn't that Mrs. Harris was greedy but she was only looking for the best for her family, to have a better life.
"And what about Madeline?" asked Mr. Harris knowing how tender the girl was compared to his older daughter who was bold.
Mrs. Harris sat next to her husband and said, "You and I both know Madeline wishes for a simple life. While Beth, you know Beth. The girl dreams about mansion, servants and jewels. If she finds a decent suitor, it might make way for Madeline too," once Beth would get engaged, there would be better prospects for Madeline, thought Mrs. Harris to herself, "Madeline is mature enough to handle herself too. Have some faith that they will be alright."
"It is not that I don't..."
A parent was not supposed to show a difference in emotions when it came to their children. Mr. Harris couldn't stop but worry about Madeline who was the opposite of Beth. She was gentle and too kind. Madeline fell paler by looks in front of her beautiful and attractive sister, but that didn't mean she wasn't pretty to look at.
The girls were often seen together, and when a man passed by, it was often Beth who caught their attention. And just because he was more concerned about Madeline, it didn't mean he loved his elder daughter any less than the younger one.
After some thought, he finally said,
"I will ask Mr. Miller if he can lend his carriage for the day."
บท 5: Preparation to go
The day of the ball finally arrived, and many young girls, women and men couldn't help but look forward to the night that was approaching closer with every tick of time and second that moved without waiting for anyone.
As written in the invitation, the ball would start at eight at night. It was also added that everyone would be eating in the castle. The thought of tasting something unusual with the mouth-watering delicacies that most had only dreamt, people could hardly wait.
The journey to the castle would take nearly an hour and none of them wanted to be late to the ball. After all, it was once in a lifetime.
"Are you going to be alright?" asked Madeline who was pulling the laces of the corset that her sister Beth wore right now. Beth held her breath and nodded her head while she held one of the bedposts.
"Make it tighter," Beth said and Madeline pulled the lace further so that Beth could have a more accentuated bodice of the figure once she would put the gown that was borrowed from Mr. Heathcliff's shop, "Okay, this looks good."
Beth went to stand in front of the mirror, turning herself back and front to make sure it looked as she wanted and it did.
"Will you be able to breathe?" Madeline asked at the tightness of her sister's corset that was making her worried just by looking at it.
"Absolutely," Beth smiled with an assuring smile, "Come, let me help you with yours," Madeline looked at her sister apprehensively.
"I will have Mama do my laces. I wouldn't want to die out of suffocation," said Madeline whose arm was pulled by Beth.
"Don't be a child. If you don't tie the corset with bodice the right, the gown is not going to sit well. I want to make sure my sister looks beautiful," Beth tugged her sister to come forward and stand near the bedpost, "Hold your breath," and when Madeline did as asked by Beth as her sister pulled the laces from the back.
Madeline let go of her breath, holding the post too so that she wouldn't be pulled back with the force that Beth used to keep the laces tight together. Beth was a good sister to Madeline and personally, she didn't mean any wrong unless there was a need for competition. She was a good person if things went her way. She liked to be first in everything and it was something she had inherited since she was a young girl.
Beth was the first one to get ready as she had completed doing her hair by tying most of her hair up while leaving two pieces of her hair curled in the back to rest on her shoulder. She wore the striking red dress that fit her perfectly that had a zip in the back. It was a half-sleeved gown with stone works around her chest and at the bottom of her skirt that had several layers.
The elder daughter of the Harris looked nothing less to a high standing woman of the society.
"Do you need any help?" asked Beth who was yet to wear her dress.
"No, I am fine," Madeline responded back who was looking at her shoe and then she turned around to look at her beautiful sister. She could see the excitement in Beth's eyes and she said, "I am sure we will have a line of men waiting for you tomorrow once we come back from the ball."
Beth waved her hand before asking, "Do you think it looks fine?"
"I think it looks fantastic," Madeline chuckled to hear her sister say.
"Are you sure you don't need any help? You haven't got your hair done yet either," Beth pursed her lips looking at her sister. To Madeline, her sister's words were of concern shown towards her.
"Yes. I will be done soon. Why don't you see if mama and papa are ready?" Madeline asked her sister to check on their parents and Beth gave her a nod.
"Alright," said Beth leaving Madeline in the room.
Madeline finally wore the gown that was somewhat pale beige in colour. Unlike her sister's dress that was made in silk, the texture of this gown was different and something she had never stumbled upon in past. It showed her shoulders with a little extra work at the top that emphasized her figure as the dress travelled down her body to touch the floor.
The dress wasn't eye-catching but it was simple yet beautiful in its own way. There were no stones but a lot of delicate thread work which Madeline had to remind herself to bring back the dress to Mr. Heathcliff in the same condition she had borrowed from the shop.
She then worked on her hair by taking many pieces of her hair at the front of her hair to tie and leaving out the rest of it that stopped just above her waist. She used pins to secure her hair while pulling small pieces of her hair from the sides of her temple.
When everyone was finally ready, they could hear many carriages passing by their house as a lot of the guests had started to head to the castle to make sure they weren't going to miss anything today.
"Look at both of you, you look so beautiful," Mrs. Harris, raised her hands to have both the girls hug her back. When they pulled back, Mrs. Harris asked Beth, "Why didn't you help Madeline with her hair? It looks very simple. There should still be time to fix it up," it was because Beth's hairstyle suited her attire and the place they would be going while Madeline appeared to have tied her hair by letting it down by simple clips.
"I did ask her," Beth said looking at Madeline's hair that did look simple and she pursed her lips. She looked at the dress that her sister wore for the fifth time since Madeline had worn it, "I asked her if she needed help," this was precisely why she had asked if Madeline needed help so that they wouldn't be late.
"That's alright, mama," Madeline held her mother's hand, "Didn't you just say we look beautiful? It should be fine," she smiled at her mother, a smile that had her mother smiling too, "Doesn't Beth look beautiful with the red dress? It suits her well," Madeline deviated the topic where her mother gave her a knowing look before she said,
"Beautiful as always," hearing the sound of the carriage and horses again, they looked at the road to finally see the carriage stop at the front of their house.
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